nothing...

"Nothing is wasted when you walk close to Me."

Sometimes we feel like we have wasted our time or our money or our efforts when we don't achieve the goal we had in mind. God assures us that if we do everything in His name and for His glory, nothing is ever wasted. We need to stop living by society's standard of "success" and focus on how God views us and our work. Even out of our biggest failures can come the greatest blessings. Don't be discouraged :) 

You are always enough for God.

called to suffer.

A senior that I look up to in the dance program taught me a very important lesson last night. We were discussing how there are people around us who seem to get everything they want and they never seem to struggle. Whether it is true or not we need to remember that we have accepted our role as children of God. We have accepted the title of Christian. And with that title comes suffering. Being a Christian does not mean life is always rainbows and sunshine. We are tested because we are being made strong. We suffer "unfairly" because Jesus suffered the greatest injustice of all and our treasure is in heaven, not here on earth. Life here is not nearly as good as it gets. Our hope is in our future. The joy we will have is far greater than the joy small earthly things bring :)

With that said, we are also called to praise God when we are suffering. When you pray, don't ask for things, praise Him for the work He has done, the work is currently doing, and for the blessings that are to come. To do that is to pray with confidence! It's like thanking Him for what we know He will do even though we don't know exactly what that is at the time. 

We are to praise God for everything that is from Him no matter how it looks to us at the time. Our perspective is so limited and we fail to remember sometimes that God makes ALL THINGS work together for our good. I believe that with all of my heart no matter how many times I may doubt it during trials. It always proves true. 

And I’ll praise You in this storm and I will lift my hands; for You are who You are, no matter where I am.

And every tear I’ve cried, You hold in Your hand. You never left my side. And though my heart is torn,

I will praise You in this storm

Casting Crowns - Praise You in This Storm

listening AND doing.

This semester I have been praying often that my desires match God's desires for me. Unfortunately a lot of times I end up praying for one thing and then not living in a way that would invite that change into my life. Praying for one thing and doing another is completely counter-productive to making progress toward a God-centered life. God's main desire is for us to walk with Him. He wants to be involved in EVERY aspect of our lives! 

We keep God so small. I find that sometimes when I pray I try to keep my intentions minimal, but that's underestimating God's power! That is a way of indirectly denying the magnitude of God. Nothing is too great a task for the Lord. The answer may not always immediately be yes, in fact the answer might not ever be yes. And that is why when we pray we should pray for God's will and pray with the awareness that God always answers prayers but not necessarily in the way we think it should be answered. Please don't ever forget that God's plans are far greater than the ones we think of. Our plans seem so appealing and ideal at the time, but only God knows what is best for us.